From the Outside Looking In
by americananime
Summary: The pond is taken over, the ducks are trapped outside, and one very wounded Nosedive is trapped inside the pond. What can Wildwing do to save the world -- and his little brother? IT IS FINISHED! I did it! *collapses*
1. Chapter One

From The Outside Looking In  
  
By: americananime  
  
A/N: Boredom because I'm home sick and miserable and I felt the urge to write out a story I've had in my head for a while. ^. ^' A while, meaning about six months or so.  
  
Disclaimer: I own nothing.  
  
* * *  
  
It was a peaceful Saturday morning as the Mighty Ducks sat down to breakfast. Nosedive was somewhere upstairs sleeping, which accounted for the peacefulness, and each of the other members of the team were quietly discussing with one another what they would be doing for the day.  
  
Mallory was hitting the mall, Grin was going to a gym, Duke was just taking a walk, Wildwing had a press conference, and Tanya was ready to max out her card at 'Lectiric land and no sign of Dragonous had shown since the Raptor had sunken to the bottom of the ocean.  
  
"'Bye," Mallory called, grabbing her purse and running out the door, hoping to beat the usual morning traffic to the mall. Duke left as well, taking a route out of the city. Grin took a duckcycle, and Tanya grabbed the Migrator. Wildwing was left staring down at his scrambled eggs, quietly. He knew he was almost late, but he always wanted to make sure Dive got out of bed before he left.  
  
As his thoughts turned to the conference ahead of him, his younger brother bounced out of the elevator. "Hi Wing," He called as he flopped down on the couch and turned on the TV for good old fashioned Cartoon Watching.  
  
"Hi Dive. I'm leaving for that conference now," Dive gave barely a nod of consent as he was absorbed into the fictional, animated world before him.  
  
As the morning progressed, Dive's drowsiness wore on and he decided that all the good cartoons had gone off and he would swing by Captain Comics.  
  
"Hey," He was greeted, as usual, by Mookie.  
  
"Good morning, sunshine," He said, laughing at her messy hair and worn-out look.  
  
"Oh, shut it, Nosedive. No, we don't have anything new since you left at closing time," She sighed, giving him a glaring look. He held up his arms in surrender, figuring that she had partied all last night and she'd brighten up after a little while.  
  
In the meantime, he hit the arcade.  
  
"Hi, Dive," He was greeted by his usual crowd of friends that hung around the arcade most Saturdays, and he gave them a nod and quickly made his way to the Tekken Series section. He started off with one, beating it within thirty minutes or so, and moved on to the other games, beating them in rapid succession.  
  
Once he got bored with video games, he decided that he would go back home, because the mall became boring after the first hundred visits. He needed somewhere new to get thrills from.  
  
When he returned home, he saw that the stadium lights were on. That was odd. He checked his watch; it was only 10 o' clock. No one else would be home and practicing at this time of day.  
  
He walked slowly up the steps and tried the door. Locked. He muttered something about not locking the door when he left and dug around in his pocket for a key. He didn't have one with him.  
  
With a mutter of frustration, he shimmied down the sewer, sniffing the dirty air with distaste. It reminded him too much of another place, in another time, on another world.  
  
The sewage he had to wade through made him sick to the point of vomiting, and he wondered again why they had put the secret door in such a miserable place. All this to get into the Pond.  
  
He punched in the security code, rolling his eyes.  
  
ACCESS DENIED  
  
He growled in frustration, kicking the door hard. He sat down on the little concrete walking space beside the door, trying to figure out why the door didn't accept his DNA code or his password.  
  
It was then that he first started to worry about whom exactly was in the pond. For it not to accept his password was one thing, but his DNA code was another. Someone would have to be in there at Drake1 and change the DNA access codes.  
  
This would mean that none of the ducks could enter if they didn't have keys. Heck, if whoever was in there really didn't want them in, their keys most likely wouldn't work anyway.  
  
It wasn't too long before an old fear began to wash over Nosedive, partly because of his unsurity and also because of the tight space he was in.  
  
"This little one can go to the furnace," A harsh voice called.  
  
"Nah. He isn't worth the fuel. He'll go to the work camps, sure 'nuff."  
  
"Look at 'em, the sissy. He's shakin' all over."  
  
Dive still remembered the harsh Saurian voices that haunted him from his past. Everyone on Puckworld was haunted by them, yet he feared them in an irrational way, as though they were still right beside him, about to give him his death penalty.  
  
"Not the furnace; that's only fer the ones that can put up fights. He'll break easy 'nuff."  
  
"Yeah, But 'cording to his mark, he's got a brother out there in the system. Wouldn't do to have 'em reunited, now would it?"  
  
"Aww, what are the chances? A million to one?"  
  
"Yeah, yeah. Just book 'em in camp 2. He isn't worth anythin' better. Lord 'Gonus wouldn't want 'em taking up too much space."  
  
"He's got a friend in th' Military."  
  
"No one would think ta rescue 'em."  
  
"True. The little one's in the camp, yeah yeah." And Nosedive had been thrown into a tiny truck, with about three other ducks his age, all crammed so close they could feel on another's breath.  
  
He could remember the three others, them all being pressed closely together for the five hour ride in utter silence. One was a rich, white feathered duck from the southern islands, according to her tags. Another was a dark skinned rich from up north. The other two were related, and most likely to be ripped apart soon. They were poor, like Nosedive, of little account. Just brothers from the west.  
  
Nosedive now started to rock back and forth, remembering the rough ride and the many events that had happened after it. It was frightening, and the vivid memories that went with it still made him break into a cold sweat.  
  
But it wasn't time for that. He had to work on the matter at hand. The roof would be the next place to start trying to break in.  
  
* * *  
  
Duke walked quietly through the woods, trying his best to keep his senses sharp. He heard every movement and every sound that was with in a mile of him, while he himself made no sound at all. It was a game he played with himself, making sure he didn't get old or forget his training. He heard and identified each sound, from a bird to highway traffic as he walked.  
  
It intensified his training, and kept his mind occupied for a few hours every Saturday. He did this, week after week, to keep himself on edge should anything else happen. Why was he so worried about not still having a sharp edge?  
  
Because, as the simple facts would tell, he was paranoid. Not in an irrational way, the way Nosedive was secretly afraid of the Saurian's at any moment, but a fear that they would strike some time and that he wouldn't be ready. So he trained, and intensified himself, making him think of nothing but the task at hand for hours at a time.  
  
Sure, it was a physical and mental strain, but the strain became less as he did this, and other, exercises regularly. Of course, these exercises had been designed for future thieves and assassins, but it would still help with any type of combat.  
  
He heard the rushing of a stream shortly ahead of him, only a few feet, and he knew that his day's walk was almost at an end. He crept, perfectly silent, upon a small stream that flowed through the woods. He sat down, wiping the sweat from his brow in the hot California sun.  
  
He washed his face, still keeping his nerves focused at noise around him, and then started a more leisurely stroll back towards where he had parked is Duckcycle four hours earlier. He had walked about five miles today, and his route got longer every Saturday.  
  
Now he climbed on his cycle, pondering whether he should work out at the pond or at home today. He decided on the pond, because it would be more peaceful. He drove quickly and quietly back to town, and parked in the private parking lot for the ducks.  
  
He raised his eyebrow when he saw through the doors that the stadium lights were on, but he just figured that it was Dive, returning early from his daily trip to the comic shop.  
  
He walked up, and tried to open the door. Locked. That was odd; the kid usually never bothered to lock doors when he left the house. Duke fished for his key for a few minutes before realizing that he had left it lying on his dresser, and shimmied up quickly to the roof.  
  
He was met face to face with Nosedive, who was trying to break down the door that led downstairs into the pond.  
  
"Who's inside?" He ask. Dive shrugged lightly, trying to break it again. Duke didn't have to ask why the whites in Dive's eyes were visible, nor why the cold sweat dripped down his brow. Nosedive had been left outside and he had reason to worry.  
  
"Calm down, Dive. You're shaking. Stop it." Duke pulled out a small lock pick, opening the door. Inside, an alarm went off, and Duke mentally scolded himself about having improved the security system just last weekend.  
  
Nosedive and Duke looked at each other for a moment, speculating their options silently.  
  
"You take the upper vents," Duke finally said, diving down the staircase. Nosedive watched after him, and then shook his head, climbing into the ventilation shaft that was above his head. Getting into the shaft was no problem, but it was a tight fit. Claustrophobia was beginning to take over. A minute ago, he'd willed himself to stop shaking under Duke's eye, out of being ashamed. But now he was in a tight spot and he didn't like tight spaces.  
  
He knew what kind of noise he was making below him with the clatter, but it didn't matter because the alarm of Drake1 was the only thing that could be heard. Nosedive suddenly realized that he didn't know where he was going.  
  
He figured he'd drop off in his room and grab some supplies, then head to the main meeting room, where the intruders would most likely be gathered.  
  
His breath slowed, his body automatically calming him down. His eyes shut as he paused at a fork in the shaft. He would be somewhere above the main hall, and he just had to go right to reach his room ... he crawled along, trying to see the Pond's layout in his head. He was surprised at how little he remembered.  
  
In about thirty minutes, he was staring down through the vent at his room. He yanked at the vent, trying to get it loose. It was locked. He dug around in his pocket and came out with a quarter and his comlink, which had been deactivated from the central control in the computer. Whoever was doing this knew them and knew their computer.  
  
Dive tried again and to his surprise, the vent fell to the floor with him. He rolled onto his back, wincing when his stomach hit some sharp part of an action figure.  
  
'I have got to clean this room up,' He thought, shaking his head and rolling to his feet. He quietly dug around in a bottom drawer, pulling out a pistol that was reserved for emergencies. Silently, he thanked Klegghorn for getting him the permit a few weeks ago.  
  
He dug around some more, and pulled out several bullets, stuffing them in his pockets. He looked around, wondering if he was missing something. He grabbed a few other pieces of weaponry, and decided to take the back entrance to the main meeting room. He crept silently along the halls, trying to calm himself even more. He had his every muscle under his control now, but his mind was throbbing with the pain of fear.  
  
He wondered what was more important for a moment, speed or stealth, and decided on speed. He broke out in a run towards the room, and stopped dead at the door.  
  
A few minutes later, Duke L'Orange met him there. They looked on the door for a moment, and Dive rolled his eyes, deciding to forget everything. He pulled his pistol and shot the lock off the door.  
  
To their surprise, it was empty and deathly quiet.  
  
"I don't like this, Duke..."  
  
"Head's up, Kid!" Duke yelled, knocking Nosedive over onto the computer consol as a spray of machine gun fire flew across where their heads had been seconds before.  
  
"Duke!" Dive saw that there was a bullet in Duke's arm that was stuck there firmly. Duke's violet eyes showed a struggle within him, and then a sound resolve to come over the pain. Soon, he looked back to normal.  
  
"Leave me here, Dive. Go into the main control room and set it back to recognize our DNA."  
  
"I don't know how --"  
  
"Just go!"  
  
Nosedive left the room in a hurry, determination setting in his eyes. Duke knew he wasn't alone, and he turned slowly, facing the person that had been behind Nosedive's back the entire time.  
  
"Siege." The large Saurian let out a growl, and swung his tail around to knock Duke over. The gray duck knew what was coming, and he jumped over it. In the process of landing, however, he fell flat on his face.  
  
Siege laughed a pitiless cruel laugh.  
  
"Though that you could hold us under water? I can't puttcha on the bottom of the ocean, but I can sure put you duckies on ice!"  
  
"Please, Siege, master the pun before attempting it on an actual target." Chuckled a dark voice from behind them. Duke rolled onto his back, sprawling around and facing Wraith.  
  
"Ahh, the thief."  
  
"Ahh, the ugly." Duke jumped onto his feet, carefully avoiding using his wounded arm, and knocked Wraith over into the computer. He grabbed Wraith's staff, breaking it against the wall, but he was grabbed by Siege.  
  
"Two stars for trying."  
  
"And another one for breaking your stick." Siege chuckled. Wraith gave him a glare. Siege twisted Duke's arms behind his back, and he felt the one that had been shot break.  
  
* * *  
  
"PASSWORD PLEASE," The computer demanded. Nosedive hit himself on the head, trying to think of what Tanya had set the password to.  
  
"Tannuers."  
  
"ACSESS DENIED."  
  
"Tanya."  
  
"ACSESS DENIED."  
  
"Tanyana Elizabeth Van drake."  
  
"ACSESS DENIED."  
  
"Puckworld."  
  
"ACESS DENIED."  
  
Nosedive's mind searched. What had been the name that Tanya had put in right in front of his eyes during the basic computer training she had given him? A snarl of frustration came from his lips.  
  
"Maggie."  
  
"Welcome, Tanya." Nosedive watched the screen as information flooded onto it. Information recently changed ... he clicked a few keys, opening several files.  
  
He shook his head, trying to clear it. The pass codes had been changed to something in a foreign language that he vaguely recognized as Saurian, and the DNA codes matched the Saurian's makeup patterns. So all he had to do to set it back was type in current passwords and then type in the new passwords ... but what were the current passwords? He would have to type it in English, because the computer wouldn't accept commands in any other language other than that, all though it would show characters from other languages once it recognized the words.  
  
Why did Tanya have to be so smart? Nosedive moaned as he tried to remember the bits of the language he had picked up from the rough work camp workers. He keyed in a few things, and he had soon hacked his way into the base. He didn't know how he had done it, but he had. Now all he had to do was change the main passwords back to simple things that the ducks could remember, and reset the DNA codes to fit only the ducks'.  
  
"Type in new password please," A mechanical voice ask. Wing was the first password, into the databank of past files, and then Dive came for the master reboot base. The list of codes went on until he had completed them, and then he had to work with the DNA.  
  
'You can do this, Dive.' He told himself as the computer pulled up a program to build the desired DNA structure.  
  
"User one."  
  
"Tanya." Dive tried to remember the DNA structure building that Tanya had showed him, and he soon was at it again. He remembered Tanya, and then he could guess the rest from what he knew of the Ducks' genetic makeup, and also their natural features.  
  
"Save Changes?"  
  
"No." Dive's voice wasn't the one that had spoken. The blond duck wheeled around on his heels, facing Dragonous.  
  
"At last we meet alone." The taller Saurian's mouth twisted into a smirk. Nosedive pulled the pistol, trying to play brave. The shaking of his hands, among other things, betrayed him.  
  
"Look at it, like a spooked horse." The Saurian stepped closer to Nosedive, who gripped the pistol harder and felt the sweat dripping off his fingers.  
  
"Fire," Taunted Dragonous. Nosedive got a grip on himself, wishing like heck that his brother were here.  
  
"Hey, Draggie, let's play a game!" Nosedive's normal persona was back.  
  
"A game? I have no time for games, child!" Dragonous advanced. Nosedive dove under a table.  
  
"How about hide and seek?" Nosedive smiled sarcastically.  
  
Dragonous bent down, trying to get Dive out from under the table. Nosedive leapt over his head, doing a tumble over the floor and landing on his feet.  
  
"What about leap frog?"  
  
Dragonous let out a snarl, slipping as he tried to chase Dive.  
  
'Where do I take him, where do I take him?' Nosedive wondered mentally. He twisted down the halls, not sure where he was going, until he reached the ice. Of course, that was the answer. The Saurians hated hockey and ice skating, so they'd have no grace on ice.  
  
Nosedive took off, sliding across the ice in his boots and grinning.  
  
"Hey, Draggie, how about some time with me, on the ice? Feel like Hockey?"  
  
Dragonous's eyes glowed read as flame spouted from his nose.  
  
"Do not toy with me!" He shouted, dashing out onto the ice but slipping across.  
  
"Nope, sorry! Time to retreat and retaliate!" Nosedive flew up the stands, to Phil's office. He locked the door behind him, glad for a moment to have a breath.  
  
He looked around, diving to the computer. Where was the file, where was it? Nosedive hit the side of the monitor. This thing was a piece of junk!  
  
Finally, the file opened, and Nosedive quickly keyed in the code to connect with the comlinks. Wildwing's face was visible on the screen. From the background sounds and sights, he was outside of the pond.  
  
"Dive! Why is the door locked?" Wildwing demanded, almost in a yell.  
  
"Shut it, dude! Dragonous is back. He's in here, and I don't know where Duke is." Nosedive's face was written with panic.  
  
Wildwing thought for a moment.  
  
"Can't you get out?"  
  
"Look, bro, the only place I'm going is nowhere - fast. They've got the entire place under their control. I just changed the password back, and you should be able to get in --"  
  
"No good, Dive. Mallory's trying right now. It won't recognize her."  
  
"The computer must have accepted Dragonous's command not to save the changes. Take the air vents."  
  
"We're all too big. Dive, you know you're the only one that could ever fit through those things!"  
  
"I don't know what you should do then. Do whatever you did that time with Klegghorn."  
  
"The lower entrance is blocked!"  
  
"Dude, do something. I'm trapped in Phil's office and I don't know where Duke is." Dive was starting to panic. His breath was shortening, and sweat once again appeared on his brow.  
  
Wildwing had walked away from where Mallory was obviously standing.  
  
"Get control, Dive. This isn't Puckworld. You aren't going to be taken into a work camp. It's ok."  
  
"They'll take me! In the furnace!" Nosedive gulped for air as his surroundings began to fade slightly.  
  
"Nosedive! Get a grip! There is no furnace!" Suddenly, there was a rattling at the door and Dragonous threw it open.  
  
Nosedive shut off the computer, turning and forgetting all of his dignity, trying his best to get away from Dragonous. He clawed at the walls, trying anything to get away.  
  
"I don't think you'll escape that way, you little unimportant brat." Dragonous snarled, grabbing Nosedive by the back of his jacket.  
  
"Chameleon." The green slimy Saurian appeared out of no where, smiling menacingly.  
  
"Yeah, boss?" He said, shifting into a mobster with a machine gun.  
  
"I don't want him dead yet, you little cretin."  
  
"Yeah, yeah, sure. Whatever you say, boss." Nosedive was roughly handled, but he didn't notice. All he could seem to feel, or think about, was the cold scaly hands on his arms. He was thrown into a cage, his head hitting the bars, somewhere down in the lower levels of the pond.  
  
"Kid." Duke's voice was soft but worried. Nosedive looked up, only just realizing that he was crying as well as bleeding.  
  
The gray drake had crawled over to the younger one, looking him over. Duke shook his head, trying to keep the tears out of his own eyes, seeing how badly the kid was hurt.  
  
"Wing's outside," Dive choked. At least he was thinking rationally enough to give what little information he had gathered.  
  
"Did you change the passwords?"  
"Dragonous stopped me," Dive coughed up a little bit of a red substance. Duke patted him.  
  
"They'll get through, Kid." He turned, looking around him for something that he could use to get out of the cage. His lock pick collection had been stolen from him when Siege had put him here, and now he was going to have to be as resourceful as he had been in the old days, when he had first started out as a thief.  
  
"Kid, you have your game boy in your pocket?" Dive looked surprised and nodded weakly, handing it over. Duke tour the back off of it, getting into the wires. A few slight changes ... he held up a small metal piece of wire, and placed it in the lock. It electicuted the security system, and a whole lot more, as the pond went dark.  
  
"C'Mon, Dive. We need to get to a safe place." Duke picked up Nosedive, trying to ignore the pain, and ran for the secret place.  
  
The secret place really wasn't a secret to any of the ducks, but it was a quiet place that Dive hung out when he wanted to be alone. Luckily, it would be hard to reach for any of the larger Saurians, not to mention hard to find. It was a small place that was located under Nosedive's closet. Duke ducked through the tiny space, remembering exactly how tight a space the hide out was.  
  
He lay Nosedive down, locking the entrance to the small space. Nosedive let out a faint moan, clawing at the floor in a waking dream.  
  
Duke didn't have time. "You'll be safe here," He whispered to Dive, climbing out and locking it behind him.  
  
The secret ways, a series of small passages that had been overlooked during the building of the pond, served as Duke's way to the outside.  
  
He found Wildwing, Mallory, and a troop of cops outside.  
  
"Duke!" Wildwing exclaimed, running over to him.  
  
"The kid's safe, but he's inside."  
  
"There isn't any safety in there! Why didn't you take him?" Klegghorn shouted, angrily. Wildwing also had a hurt and confused stare.  
"Because he wouldn't have made it two steps passed his bedroom." Duke replied, rubbing his wounded arm.  
  
"Is he bad?"  
  
"Other than the fact that he's going mental? Yes, he's bad."  
  
"What's wrong with him?"  
  
"You know." Wildwing closed his eyes, trying to shut out the image of Nosedive somewhere alone and hurt.  
  
"Well, we've got to get in there. Why can't we just blow the door in?" Klegghorn snarled.  
  
"Because the entire pond is proofed against any type of attack, including nuclear." Wildwing replied, rubbing his forehead.  
  
"And you're telling me that those lizards are controlling it? How'd they get in?"  
  
"The door wasn't locked."  
"What kind of idiots leave their door unlocked?!"  
  
"Trustful idiots. Like Dive." Wildwing muttered.  
  
"And how'd you get out, then?"  
  
"The tunnels I took were sealed. Siege discovered them and thought that you might get in that way. I heard him coming behind me."  
  
"Great. So Nosedive is trapped and those lizards have nuclear capabilities at their fingertips?"  
"Somehow, Klegghorn, I don't think it's the nuclear capabilities they want." 


	2. Chapter Two

From the Outside Looking In  
  
By: americananime  
  
Chapter Two  
  
A/N: AA's been a bad girl, making people beg and wait. *head hangs* *hands all her virtucookies over to the great virtucookie master of the internet* Bad Llama. *slaps self on hand* Happy V-Day + Valentine's Day. If you celebrate neither, happy day anyway. :) Oh, yes, there's a bit of religion in this chapter; Christian religion. If you don't like that, I suppose you could either skip it or hit the back button, but I'd recommend you'd read it; you might learn something.  
  
Disclaimer: *sounding something like a zombie* I own nothing. Disney and Coca Cola own everything. Jean Gray is the weakest link. Good Bye  
  
* * *  
  
Nosedive's eyes opened slowly, and waking sense came even slower. For a while, all he knew was that he was in pain. He saw some sort of foggy dream world in front of his eyes, which seemed to be covered in glaze and smudged all over.  
  
"I know the brat has to be around here somewhere. I saw 'em come in," Said a voice above him. Dive then tried to wake himself, and soon he could hear footsteps above him.  
  
He crawled into the darkest corner of the hideout, pushing some old, dusty comics out of his way. He held his breath as Wraith opened the door with magic, and Chameleon climbed inside.  
  
"I don't see nothin' down here," The green Saurian said. Wraith's head poked down, showing distaste for the low ceilinged room that spanned for most of the length of Dive's room.  
  
"In that corner, the comic books. Get them!" Wraith barked. Nosedive, with some sort of animal instinct new that they would catch him in a matter of minutes.  
  
"They've been recently disturbed." Chameleon crept nearer to Nosedive's dark hiding spot, and grabbed his ankle.  
  
"I got 'em!" The Saurian shouted.  
  
Nosedive twisted away, trying at all costs to get away from both Saurians. He knew it was hopeless to resist, but somehow it was impossible not to.  
  
They caught him in a number of minutes, putting him in front of Dragonus. The large red saurian smiled in sheer pleasure, the malice of his thoughts written all over his face.  
  
Nosedive maintained a harsh glare that showed he wasn't giving up as his insides turned within him. Panic struggled with reason inside his head; reason and willpower won over, for once. Thank Heaven.  
  
"You honestly thought you could get away hiding in the same building as one such as myself?" Dragonus leered, a self-satisfied smirk written over his face. Nosedive growled, and tried to lung forward and out of Siege's grip.  
  
"So, where are your other ducky teammates? I suppose they're in here somewhere too? Oh, wait, they're dead." Dragonus's smile grew larger as shock resistered on Nosedive's face.  
  
"They were stupid enough to all stand outside in one place, right where I had bombs and everything else, the idiots. Quite a few cops were taken out with them, too." Another smirk that Nosedive couldn't stand. Now he was blind with fury, knowing that he had nothing left and he had to either put a stop to the dictator's plans or die trying.  
  
"The rest of the earth, and the miserable humans that inhabit it, will all soon be gone to make way for a better, more powerful race to rule it!"  
  
"Only to destroy it, like you did your own planet?" Dive spat. He'd learned a good deal of history; he was a lot smarter than most people would think by glancing at him. The Saurians had constantly been having civil wars braking out over the entire planet of Saurina, until the race virtually destroyed themselves, and the once beautiful planet had become no more than a shadow of what it had once been. Thus, the Saurians had set out on their first venture, eventually becoming feared conquers throughout the Galaxy.  
  
"If it is my pleasure!" He roared, fire coming out his nostrils and lunging at Dive. Siege, wisely, stepped away as his master flew into a fit of rage, knocking the boy around with all his might, shoving drones out of the way and destroying unimportant pieces of equipment.  
  
Nosedive, by the time Dragonus was through, was nothing more than a live rag doll. Actually, it was hard to say if he even was alive at the point when the Saurian was through. He had passed out during the beating, and he was bleeding in several places that didn't look good.  
  
"Lord Dragonus," Wraith appeared out of the shadows, bringing the musty smell of old books and scrolls with him.  
  
Dragonus turned to him, growling and giving looks that threatened a second fit of rage on his most trusted advisor.  
  
"What?" He ask.  
  
"Lord Dragonus, the boy is the weak link; we must keep him alive." Finally Dragonus nodded in consent.  
  
"Keep him in comfort," He commanded his two other minions. Chameleon and Siege were extremely confused, but they roughly dragged Nosedive back to a guest room that housed nothing that could possibly be dangerous. They checked all around for secret passages and the like, but none turned up. So, feeling they had done their duty, they left and locked the door soundly behind them.  
  
Nosedive was awake in a few hours, or at least what tone might vaguely considered being awake. He was caught somewhere in a dream world, seeing past events; or maybe they were events yet to come.  
  
It was just like Puckworld, just like it, only they were humans, so many of them. He shuddered again, afraid, unconsciously curling into a small ball as his head bled onto his pillow.  
  
He rocked back and forth, wishing only for the comfort of his brother. Coughs came out of his mouth, coughs and blood. He remained in that state for hours, or days, rocking back and forth and dreaming of some sort of Holocaust, mixed with memories and longings for his brother and his parents. He hadn't wished for his parents in a very long time, nor had he been homesick for a very long time.  
  
But right now, his family looked like the best thing in the world to him, beside God. How he would like to be with Jesus and his mother and father, and Wildwing too. Maybe even Canard.  
  
He swallowed again, and knew he had to be brave. He sat up, feeling things spin until they snapped into place. He saw what room he was in, and gasp. It was the guest room; the soundproof, shock proof, completely locked guest room.  
  
The very small, very white guest room. He knew he was trapped. He locked over to the window, which was covered in a pane that was bolted to the wall.  
  
He gulped, looking out over the city and the woods toward the back of the pond. He shook his head, holding it slowly and gently inspecting each of his wounds in the little blurred reflection that showed him himself in a little blurred way. In a far away way. In a different, happier place, maybe.  
  
He called his thoughts back to the present, and set about ripping sheets. He wrapped one around his head, which had been gashed, thanking God and Tanya that he had taken those medical lessons from his scientific friend. While he worked, he looked and thought about any way that he could possibly get out.  
  
This room was a sound place, one that would be hard to escape if Dragonus didn't want him too. Before he could come up with any sort of a plan, the doors opened with a hiss and Wraith stood in front of him. The old Saurian inspected Nosedive's crude medical work, shaking his head and muttering something that Nosedive thought was either a spell or a prayer.  
  
Nosedive backed against the wall, hoping that Wraith didn't try anything on him. 'Please God, help me,' He thought, in the back of his head, offering up his own prayer to Heaven.  
  
Wraith grabbed Nosedive gently and sat him down on the bed, tending to him in a more old fashioned way of medicine than Nosedive would think. Slowly the cuts and bruises were cleaned.  
  
"Why are you keeping me alive?" Nosedive wasn't sure why he ask the question. Somehow, he wasn't even sure that it was him who ask the question.  
  
Wraith glanced up from his work on Nosedive's arm, staring at the young duck hard.  
  
"You are worth more than any singular member of the team. Because, don't you know, a weakness is more important to the enemy than the strength."  
  
Nosedive didn't know what Wraith meant, and it made him feel uneasy.  
  
* * *  
  
The rain fell down outside the cafe that the ducks had gone to get some rest. Mallory looked uneasy; Tanya looked stressed, Duke had lost his smooth talk, Grin was acting like a normal person, and Wildwing was crying in the back booth.  
  
Tanya leaned against a wall, breathing deeply, trying to order her thoughts. She shook her head several times, to some thought unknown to even herself, and her nerves were as ruffled as her feathers. Dragonus could attack at any time, anywhere he wanted. Out of security measures, she had installed a program to hack into national databases any time out of defense or boredom. Arguably, DrakeOne was a better hacking computer than America's main data base.  
  
She chewed on her nails as a waitress brought her some coffee, which was complimentary.  
  
Duke watched out the windows as the restlessness in him began to grow. He drank his black coffee slowly, feeling feelings that he had locked away for a long time. He tasted salt with his coffee, and realized that a tear had dropped into his cup. He was reliving the last couple of weeks, how he had kind of taken Nosedive in as a brother, or maybe a son.  
  
He heard muffled sobs coming from the booth behind him; he knew it was Wildwing. He found it extremely scary that one of his best friends -- and his leader -- was now having a mental breakdown. He stood up, stretching his limbs, and realized that the cafe was cleared out.  
  
It was somewhere around midnight, and he knew it was way passed closing time for the small restaurant; the staff didn't want to kick them out. The fact was, this was truly a crisis, and it was on every news station. Duke saw by looking at the door that it was locked; the cafe staff knew that it wasn't a good idea to let the press go wild on a very, very stressed team.  
  
He turned to the booth behind him, and slid down in it, across from Wildwing. For a moment, the younger drake didn't look up, but then he met Duke's eyes.  
  
They both understood how the other was feeling, because they were feeling the same, on different levels.  
  
"Wildwing?" Duke's normally smooth, velvety voice was raspy, and at the edge of breaking. Wildwing's blue eyes had rims of red and his shoulders shook slightly.  
  
"C'mon, you know the kid," The older drake continued.  
  
"You know the Saurians," Wildwing replied in a broken voice. Duke shook his head, slowly.  
  
"Ye of little faith; C'mon, Dive's got wild angels and you know it. He always makes it without even getting a scar to show from it."  
  
The two looked at each other with a wide grin.  
  
"You know, there was this one time when we were really little and Nosedive jumped off a two story roof for five bucks," Wildwing laughed as Duke paled.  
  
"He jumped, and he landed on the lawn furniture. He's always had that kind of weird luck," Wildwing shrugged. They both looked at each other, grinning. The same weird luck had also taught him how to manage their plane within minutes and had gotten him with Wildwing at the exact right time in the work camps; Maybe there were angels involved.  
  
"So, did he get the five bucks?"  
  
"Yup; and blew it all on Drake Ducain comics." Wildwing grinned and sighed.  
  
"Sounds true," Duke grinned back, and gave Wildwing a firm squeeze on the arm, and then he walked back to his own booth, leaning against it with a deep, worried sigh. Were Dive's "Wild Angels" with him now?  
  
* * *  
  
Nosedive was brought before Dragonus again a few hours after Wraith had tended to his wounds properly.  
  
"So, your brother is dead. If you ever escape, what do you plan to do, Nosedive Dawson Drake?" Dragonus demanded. Nosedive mentally wondered why Dragonus knew his middle name, and then dismissed the thought as unimportant.  
  
"I plan to defeat you," Nosedive said, defiantly, diving for a small space that was just between DrakeOne and the wall. He shimmied through the crack in the wall, loosing a shoe in the process.  
  
His loose Mortal Combat shirt clung to him as sweat and dust gathered on his body as he continued to travel right and down. If he kept heading this way ... he felt the texture change under him, all though he couldn't see anything through the darkness.  
  
It was a place where the insulation had failed; a fault in the HQ's seemingly faultless plans. He was miles below the city of Anaheim, in a place that Duke had discovered weeks ago.  
  
There was a small room, something like a cavern, and he entered it soon. There were matches, dry wood, and an extra commlink stashed here.  
  
The commlink, as well as the wood, had gotten wet by the recent hurricane. Nosedive closed his eyes, trying to maintain his temper.  
  
'What would Wing do?' He ask himself, wiping the sweat from his brow. He dug around some more, and he hit pay dirt; batteries in an undamaged container, flashlights that hadn't been wet, and something that looked like army rations packs.  
  
He opened the packs, realizing that he hadn't eaten since early morning sometime yesterday, and ate hungrily whatever he could find. He slowed as he realized that he might be here a while, and turned on the flashlight.  
  
Someone had been here recently, or so it appeared. The cave's dirt walls had been smoothed, and there were a few pictures and trinkets ornamenting it. He knew that this must be the little retreat Duke slipped into his conversations every once and a while.  
  
He leaned on his back, grabbing the commlink and staring at it. He had run a broken ArowWing before; why couldn't he fix a commlink? He saw that the wires weren't connected properly, and that the batteries were overloaded.  
  
He tried to think of a powersorce, and looked at the second flashlight he had found. It only took a few seconds to remove the batteries from that and he rewired it ... the only problem was, he didn't have a connection with Wildwing or any of the other ducks -- he was talking to every live television and radio station on the planet!  
  
"Hello, this is Nosedive Drake. I repeat, this is Nosedive Drake. I have been held hostage for some time in The Pond, home of the Mighty Ducks (Hey, yo, if you're ever in town, come watch us play! The divester rules!). I am currently in a small underground room directly below the Anaheim mall. If anyone can find me or rescue me, please do. Tell my brother Wildwing that I am all right." He watched the comm for any response, but the news stations apparently couldn't respond to him.  
  
Instead, as they usually did, the press had a field day.  
  
* * *  
  
Wildwing watched the screen as his little brother's earnest, dirty, ragged and injured face appeared on the screen.  
  
"Hello, this is Nosedive Drake," He began. Wildwing listened to his brother's message. "Tell my brother Wildwing that am all right." It ended. There were traces of tears on Nosedive's face as he peered into what must be a commlink rewired to a television network.  
  
The cafe's TV was turned up to its full sound.  
  
"This was the message transmitted by underage NHL star, Nosedive Drake, who had been held hostage for the past twenty-four hours by some sort of Alien. We are puzzled about his current locations, but reporters are trying to contact Wildwing Drake, Nosedive's older brother, for details."  
  
Wildwing didn't even hear the end of the broadcast as he dove out the door, with the rest of the ducks close behind.  
  
The migrator felt a bit empty without Nosedive when they flew down the streets to the mall, deciding to first look under Captain Comics.  
  
The FBI's HR team was already there, taking the store apart. Wildwing didn't have to do so -- he knew exactly where to look.  
  
He walked over to the shelf that held Archie Comics, and knocked them away, sending issues of Sonic the Hedgehog reeling out of the way. There it was. A large gaping staircase that he had once overheard Thrash and Mookie talking about. No one had ever gone down it before because it was rumored to be haunted, but Wildwing knew that that would be where his little brother was. This decision wasn't only based on the fact that he knew logically that this was the only passage in the Mall, but also by some primitive instinct that he had for finding his brother. He dove down the dirt staircase, as the rest of the team (except Grin) followed.  
  
Grin, who was much too big for the tunnel, stood guard.  
  
Wildwing's thundering footsteps and choked sobs could be heard by Nosedive a mile away.  
  
His older brother came dashing down the stairs, and the two met with a firm, grasping hug. Nosedive cried as much as Wildwing, and they were both too glad to see each other for words.  
  
Duke grinned, secretly congratulating himself for creating this secret place where Nosedive had taken refuge.  
  
"Now," Mallory said, her hands on her hips.  
  
Nosedive grinned through his tears.  
  
"We have to kick some lizard butt."  
  
TBC  
  
A/N: No, it's not the end. Only the reuniting between Nosedive and Wildwing. I think this chapter is a little lame, but then that's me. BTW, Thank Nightbloom (I can't remember what she goes as here on FF.net) for planting the idea of Nosedive beening the weakness in my head; I've been trying to play that point in some of my fics without looking like I'm ripping her off. TTFN.  
  
Preview: How will the ducks regain their HQ? Is Dive out of the woods yet? Find out in the conclusion of "From the Outside Looking In". 


	3. Chapter three - The conclusion

From the Outside Looking In  
  
Part 3  
  
By: americananime  
  
A/N: Anyone who can tell me each of the duck's positions on the team (the correct hockey term) will get a request picture or something; I'm not sure of the terms or the positions, beside Goalie and Center (Duke and Wildwing, am I right? Please let me be! Also, I THINK that Nosedive is defense, but I'm not sure -- right or left?) Help a poor bum out, ja? Please? In the meantime, please excuse my baddy-ness with the terminology; all though I love the sport (Go Sea Wolves!), I don't know jack about any of the technicalities. My dad has to explain what's happening most of the time when we go to games. Oh, and gutter brains, just because Nosedive & Wildwing sleeping in the same bed DOES NOT = yaoi. They're brothers, and they're aloud to do that. I don't support Yaoi!  
  
Anyway, I would like to know how YOU think Dragonous is spelled. I'm having a bit of a hissy fit over a mailing list incident that happened recently, and I'd like to hear from the general public.  
  
____________________________________  
  
Nosedive emerged from the secret passage in Captain Comics first. Wildwing was helping him, noticing that he was limping in his left leg.  
  
Mook and Thrash met him with the type of happiness that one only sees when a friend that had been dead to them was alive again. Nosedive greeted his buddies in typical fashion: He recited the latest mongoose joke that he had made up while in the Saurian's grasp.  
  
"Nosedive," Mookie said through tears. "You're an idiot," He grinned a toothy grin at his friends, doing a small salute.  
  
"That's me."  
  
"Wild Angels," Duke whispered, almost in awe, and no one had to ask why. The paramedics arrived shortly after that; it looked like they would be missing a defense player for the season.  
  
They patched Nosedive up, with his usual good-natured objections. He was bouncing and ready to go before anyone was willing to let him.  
  
"Take a rest, Nosedive." Wildwing told his younger brother.  
  
In the parking lot, they heard a squeal of wheels burning rubber over the asphalt. Phil came rushing in, breathing heavily.  
  
"I have reservations booked for you at a small motel where no one will look; Is one of my booblas going to be out? Oh no! What are we going to do?" Phil grabbed Nosedive by the collar of his shirt.  
  
"I don't know, Phil. Hire someone else," Nosedive said, trying to brush his manager off.  
  
"Not to reckon with Phil's force, but we've got things a little more important than the season on our hands!" Mallory said, giving Phil a good sound kick behind the knee.  
  
While Phil screamed in pain, the ducks briefly conferred about what they were going to do. They agreed sleeping on it might not bring the fastest solution, but it would be the best one.  
  
They arrived at the motel, which was horrible. There were two rooms; one for the girls and one for the boys. With two beds in each room, Mallory and Tanya fit nicely.  
  
Nosedive and Wildwing piled up because they were brothers, Duke claimed the second bed because Grin couldn't be supported by it, and the big guy himself slept on the floor.  
  
That is to say, he sat on the floor and talked.  
  
"Nosedive, what happened in there?" Wildwing whispered, long after they thought the other two were asleep.  
  
Nosedive winced, his face lit by the cheep artificial light that fell through the windows long passed midnight in the LA area.  
  
"C'mon, Nosedive."  
  
"A lot of running, a lot of fear, and a lot of Dragonous, Was all Nosedive would say for a while. Duke stirred slightly in his bed, secretly listening in on the brothers' quite conversation.  
  
Wildwing's eyes flared with anger that his younger brother had been abused and tortured by Dragonous. By some instinct, some supernatural bond that the two brothers had, Wildwing could sense exactly what his younger brother had felt and was feeling: fear.  
  
"Nosedive, you're still afraid," Wildwing said, ever the master of stating the obvious. Nosedive's body was curled with his head between his knees, and he gave a sort of agreement from inside his little ball.  
  
"Nosedive, c'mon, it's all right. You can tell me," Wildwing said, gently.  
  
"Well, see, at one point he got mad ... it was scary, Wing. My mind draws a blank whenever I think about it, and I'd prefer not to talk about it." Nosedive's soft snore was heard after a moment of silence.  
  
Wildwing felt like he'd just been slammed into a brick wall. But this was the first thing his brother had ever not told him, and it stung.  
  
He was about to fall back to sleep when Duke's soft voice whispered, "Wildwing?"  
  
Wildwing looked down on the floor, twisting around slightly.  
  
"He tells me everything,"  
  
"Yes he does. But you can't expect him to tell you everything forever ... do you tell him everything?"  
  
Wildwing looked startled; there were a lot of things that he didn't tell Nosedive. He didn't tell him about what had happened to him in the work camps on Puckworld, or even some things that had happened on Earth. He had thought of it as protection; it had been a shield to Nosedive, but it had been Wildwing's own way of keeping things to himself.  
  
"No, I guess I don't," Wildwing rolled over and went to sleep as well.  
  
When they woke up, they found that they had a call from Phil waiting on them.  
  
Wildwing dialed the number that was listed. It was one he didn't know, most likely Phil's home number. He heard a brief ringing and then Phil picked up the phone.  
  
"Hello, Phillip Palmfeather speaking."  
  
"Phil? Hey, this is Wildwing. We need to talk,"  
  
"I'll say we do! What time is it?! How late do you ducks sleep on your planet? I've been worried all night and the hotel wouldn't patch me to you!"  
  
"Phil, we were asleep. It's five in the morning. And I really don't feel like arguing with you."  
  
"All right, All right," Phil muttered, angrily.  
  
"Anyway, Phil, where are we going to stay?" Wildwing's voice was touched with a sense of urgency.  
  
"I don't know. The only thing I can think to do is take some money out of your account and rent an apartment or something."  
  
"Phil, that's impractical. We can't just rent an apartment; we most likely couldn't find one to rent!" Phil's sigh was audible from the other side of the line.  
  
The line clicked dead.  
  
Later in the day, Wildwing, Nosedive, and the rest of the team stood in front of the pond, armed with the only guns Klegghorn had been aloud to give them. Among other things, they also had pepper spray and knockout gas, if it was to be any help.  
  
"I'll take the vents," Nosedive volunteered. Duke said, "I've got the basement entrance."  
  
"And we'll take the best way in," Wildwing held up a stick of dynamite. Nosedive found this extremely funny, since this was exactly what they weren't going to do. Mallory and Tanya were taking the route that the Migrator usually took, Grin was smashing in the front door, Duke was taking the entrance from the roof, and Nosedive and Wildwing were taking the sewer.  
  
"It's okay, bro," Wildwing said as he noticed the petrified look on Nosedive's face when they reached the sewer. It reminded Wildwing of a place he didn't want to be, too.  
  
"Wing, I don't know if I can go back in there," Nosedive grasped a pipe. He didn't know why the fear was returning - his brother was here now. But maybe it wasn't something that his brother could do for him. Maybe it was something he had to do on his own.  
  
He took a deep breath and moved on through the sludge. He stopped suddenly as Wildwing took an unexpected turn.  
  
"Where are we going?"  
  
"We're headed to another entrance that was recently constructed," Wildwing replied. Nosedive blinked, wondering why he hadn't known about a new entrance.  
  
"When did it get built?" He ask, watching the world around him grow darker.  
  
"Just now," Suddenly, a shimmer surrounded Wildwing, and he turned into Chameleon. Nosedive jumped back, instinctively grabbing his pistol, and stood in a ready position.  
  
"Saurian Scum, I think you need a bashin'." Nosedive said, yelping and leaping forward. Some of the martial arts lessons he had taken when he was younger came into play as he kicked and swirled. He just couldn't bring himself to use the gun. He wasn't meant to.  
  
Chameleon soon was on the floor, but Wraith was there to back him up in seconds.  
  
The sorcerer turned out to be a bit more of a challenge; since he kept the young duck back, Nosedive couldn't pull any moves in close combat. He pulled out the gun and hit him with a well-aimed shot to the arm.  
  
He got up to crawl away, but he was slung against the wall by Siege. He had to think fast now.  
  
The Saurian was too big to pull any moves on, not the mention he had almost an impenetrable shell all over his body.  
  
"Stop." Dragonous's voice rang from behind them. Nosedive turned and glared at him, writhing in the pain.  
  
"We need him," The largest Saurian picked Nosedive up by the back of his vest, not caring that he clawed him in the neck.  
  
A little while later, Nosedive came to. He had been knocked out, most likely with gas, but he couldn't' remember the particulars.  
  
Dragonous stood above him, chuckling slightly.  
  
"It all leads down to this," He put down a glowing green gem in front of Nosedive. His blue eyes crossed looking at the enchanting glow. He didn't speak, though. He waited, trusting that Dragonous would explain what this had to do with both of them, and why he needed Nosedive so much, and how this fit into the most recent plan for world domination.  
  
"It is the stone of Drake Ducaine, the one that was used to forge the mask." Wraith said, his shadowy figure appearing out of a swirling column of green smoke. Nosedive's eyes grew wider; this exact object had been the subject of so much of his favorite comic books, movies and even professional documentaries when he had been on his home world. It was a legend, almost as famous as the Mask itself.  
  
"What am I supposed to do with it?" Nosedive's arms folded, glaring slightly.  
  
Dragonous put a lump of gold down in front of the young drake. Nosedive looked at it, guessing what that meant. He wanted him to forge something as powerful as the mask, maybe a weapon, maybe another mask.  
  
"Why do you think I can do it?" He spat at the Saurian that loomed above him.  
  
"That is simple. You are the heir of Ducaine, and you are the one that must do it! It would never be as powerful as if your brother did it; you have something that he doesn't." Nosedive's eyes narrowed and then widened, his mind searching for what he could possibly have that Wildwing didn't.  
  
"You have trust, you have faith, and you have," Dragonous made a sound of distaste. "Innocents." He spat the word out like a curse word. Nosedive stared at him, taking the glowing rock in his hands.  
  
"I want a sword, one with the destructive power strong enough for domination, strong enough to destroy that mask," Dragonous demanded, standing tall.  
  
"What makes you think I'm gonna do anything for you?" He demanded, angrily. Siege walked in, and Wildwing was being dragged along on his knees, without the mask. He also had a gun pressed against his head.  
  
Nosedive gave a cry of anger, but Dragonous told Chameleon, who was holding the gun, to fire at will.  
  
"Stop!" He cried, grabbing the stone tighter and pressing it against the gold. He carved fast, not even his hands knowing the shape that he forged, the stone guiding without the slightest orders.  
  
`Did Drake Ducaine do it like this? Did he know what he was shaping?' Nosedive wondered, letting his hands fly. A long, samurai type sword formed under his hands, wielded with ruins that he didn't know the meanings to.  
  
The sword was complete; he had finished it. And he couldn't think of a better thing to do with it, than - of course - using it. Nosedive, with a sudden burst of courage, grabbed it and dived toward Chameleon, slashing mindlessly. He cut the gun in half, letting it fall to the ground, and then wrestled Wildwing free of Siege.  
  
"You imbeciles! Do something!" Dragonous yelled, leaping forward towards Nosedive.  
  
The duck ducked, grasping the sword and managing a cut it Dragonous's stomach. He rolled over, back on his feet, gasping for breath. Meanwhile, Duke had made it to them first. He fired off a puck, which wrapped rope around Dragonous, causing him to fall over on his side.  
  
Nosedive dashed to Siege, trying to drive him back, toward the ice. The ice was the Saurians' weak point; they had no grace, no skill, and no advantage there. Before he could drive anyone onto the rink, a faint flickering went over all of the Saurians, and they disappeared.  
  
Chameleon's teleport didn't go smoothly, and he landed in a dark corner of the stands.  
  
Duke dashed up, grabbing the little green monster by his neck. He was about to strangle him when Nosedive's voice rose up: "Don't kill him, Duke!"  
  
Duke looked down toward the ice, where his younger friend was standing. He nodded his head, knowing that Nosedive was right. He couldn't kill the little green minion; but what to do with him was now the question.  
  
"We'll put him in a cell," Wildwing said, walking up the stands. Duke nodded; the ducks' cells weren't as cruel as the Saurians', but they were impossible to get out of. It would be especially hard for a little unintelligent thing like Chameleon.  
  
Nosedive nodded, taking Chameleon carefully to the cell as the other ducks belatedly arrived on the scene.  
  
Afterward  
  
That night, things were back to normal. Mallory had discovered the beetles in her shoes earlier, and Wildwing was declaring five o'clock practices once again.  
  
The only thing that was different was Nosedive. He felt different. He was different. He had changed.  
  
He gently touched the sword that he had wrought, knowing that something had changed, that he had grown, grown a courage that he had never known. Or maybe the courage hadn't grown; maybe it had been there all along.  
  
Never the less, he knew that things would be different. Maybe for the first time in his life, he felt like he was equal to the other team members.  
  
He had showed stealth, like Duke, when he had hidden from Dragonous. He had showed clam when he told Duke to spare Chameleon, like Grin, and he had been a soldier like Mallory when he had obeyed Duke to stay in the hiding place. He had shown computer skills when he had hacked into DrakeOne's databases, like Tanya. And, most importantly, he had shown bravery and skill, like Wildwing, when it mattered most.  
  
"Nosedive?" Wildwing gave a small knock on Nosedive's door. Nosedive turned around, a basket of dirty cloths in his hands.  
  
"Yeah, Wing, what's up?" He ask, as though nothing had happened.  
  
"I'm proud of you."  
  
"Yeah, can't help but be proud?" Wildwing rustled Nosedive's hair, grinning. Then he pulled out something. It was green and white, to match Nosedive's uniform, and it looked like some kind of big case that would fit onto a belt.  
  
"Nosedive, thought you could use this for your sword; You'll want it later, I think," Wildwing told him, and then abruptly walked out.  
  
* * *  
  
A/N: Does anyone like it? *wince* Wow, five pages, that's a lot for me! Anyway, do you like it? Huh? I don't want to disappoint everyone who's been so kind to review. Anyway, this story kind of launches for the rest of my other stories, except for two in planning - "The Ducaine Story" (About the original Drake Ducaine, although some of the references about the glowing rock and a few other things), and "The Invasion." (Although some references might also be made there.)  
  
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